AUSTIN, Texas — Two of the state's "Most Wanted" fugitives were recently arrested in the Austin area, the Texas Department of Public Safety said Tuesday.
DPS said 54-year-old William Eugene Bird was arrested by the Austin Police Department following a traffic stop on Aug. 24. The Bastrop County Sheriff's Office (BCSO) assisted in the arrest.
Bird had been wanted since October 2021, when the BCSO issued a warrant for a probation violation.
The DPS said in 2012, Bird was convicted of indecency with a child by exposure after an incident involving a 10-year-old girl. He was sentenced to six years of confinement. Then, in 2014, he was convicted of failure to comply with sex offender registration requirements and sentenced to another four years.
In 2021, he was convicted of injury of a child and was sentenced to one year of confinement. That same year, he was convicted of failure to comply with sex offender registration requirements from a previous conviction and received six years' probation.
Bird's Aug. 24 arrest was the result of tip information received through Texas Crime Stoppers, so a reward will be paid to the tipster.
The other fugitive now in custody, 30-year-old Nathan Reed Bingham, was arrested on Aug. 30 at a Hutto home by the U.S. Marshals Lone Star Fugitive Task Force. Bingham had been wanted since February, when the Rockwall County Sheriff's Office issued warrants for his arrest for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon and theft of property.
The DPS said in 2015, Bingham was convicted of obstruction/retaliation and credit/debit card abuse and was sentenced to nine months of confinement. In 2017, he was convicted of possession of a controlled substance and sentenced to two years of confinement.
In 2021, Bingham was arrested in Austin for unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, unlawful possession of a firearm, theft of a firearm and theft of property. He then bonded out.
According to DPS, Texas Crime Stoppers offers cash rewards to anyone who provides information that leads to an arrest of one of Texas’ 10 Most Wanted Fugitives or Sex Offenders. So far this year, DPS and other agencies have arrested 47 Texas 10 Most Wanted Fugitives and Sex Offenders. In addition, $75,000 in rewards has been paid.
To be eligible for cash rewards, tipsters must provide information by calling the Crime Stoppers hotline at 1-800-252-TIPS (8477); submitting a tip through the DPS website by selecting the fugitive you have information about, then clicking on the link under their picture; or by submitting a Facebook tip by clicking the “SUBMIT A TIP” link under the “About” section.
All tips are anonymous, regardless of how they are submitted.
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